1869–1873
LSU’s first State Geologist, Francis V. Hopkins, and Charles H. Lockett produced the
first statewide geologic reports and maps before funding cuts halted the work.
1892–1897
In 1892, geologist Otto Lerch was hired to resume statewide geological work but died
after just a year in Louisiana, and LSU professor William W. Clendenin continued this
effort from 1894 to 1897, publishing geological, botanical, and agricultural studies.
1899–1909
In 1899, Gilbert D. Harris of Cornell University was hired to study Louisiana’s geology;
he and his assistants produced numerous maps and reports and began a tradition of
cooperative work with the U.S. Geological Survey before funding again ended their
work in 1909.
1913–1919
Frederick E. Emerson arrived at LSU in 1913 as Professor of Geology and head of the
Louisiana Soil and Geological Survey, leading the survey until his death in 1919,
after which the unit was abolished and LSU briefly had no geologists.
1931–1934
In 1931, the Legislature created the Bureau of Scientific Research in the Louisiana
Department of Conservation to study the state’s natural resources, with Cyril K. Moresi
as head and H. V. Howe of LSU’s School of Geology as a key collaborator.
1934
The Louisiana Geological Survey was created in 1934 as the successor to the Bureau
of Scientific Research, with Moresi as its first head and headquarters in the Geology
Building at LSU, where staff launched extensive mapping and research across the state.
1940–1947
Moresi was removed in 1940 during an LSU reorganization and replaced by John Huner
Jr., who created a system of state districts with district geologists, followed by
short tenures by Paul Montgomery, James M. Cunningham, and cartographer Gerard Coignet
during a period of administrative instability.
1947–1977
In 1947, Leo W. Hough became head of the Survey and over the next three decades LGS
compiled many foundational geologic maps and reports while serving both as the state’s
geological research arm and as its oil and gas regulatory arm.
1973–1979
In 1973, LGS’s oil and gas regulatory functions and staff became the Geologic Division
of the Louisiana Department of Conservation, and after Hough’s 1977 retirement his
assistant Harry L. Roland Jr. served as interim head during a transition that placed
LGS under the new Louisiana Department of Natural Resources.
1979–1990
In 1979, Charles G. Groat, then chair of the Geology Department at the University
of Texas at El Paso and former head of the Texas Bureau of Economic Geology, was hired
to lead LGS and began a major program of modernization and expansion.
1980s
Under Groat’s leadership, LGS expanded staff, acquired modern equipment and technology,
secured significant external funding, launched new research and regulatory assistance
programs, and helped establish what would become the Louisiana Coastal Restoration
Division.
1990–1997
Groat took a leave in 1990 to lead the American Geological Institute, with John E.
Johnston III serving as acting head, and after Groat’s 1992 resignation William E.
Marsalis of the Louisiana Office of Mineral Resources directed LGS through its 1997
transfer from the Department of Natural Resources to LSU.
1997–2000
Once LGS was placed under LSU’s Office of Graduate Studies and Research, Marsalis
remained with the Department of Natural Resources and Chacko J. John was appointed
head of LGS, later overseeing a merger that made LSU’s Basin Research Institute the
Basin Research Energy Section of LGS in 2000.
2000s–present
LGS is now housed in the Energy, Coast and Environment Building on the LSU campus,
where it continues its research, mapping, and data stewardship mission in support
of Louisiana’s natural resources and environment.
1980s–present
Since the early 1980s, LGS has provided emergency technical support to the State of
Louisiana, deploying teams to the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency
Preparedness during crises and earning commendations for scientific support, mapping,
and search and rescue efforts during major hurricanes such as Andrew, Katrina, Rita,
Gustav, and Ike.
